The present invention relates to furniture and, more particularly, to an adjustable armrest device. Furniture pieces, such as chairs, lounges, sofas and the like, often include armrests that are made to pivotably adjust relative to a back support/element. Armrests may be made to move from the vertical to the horizontal. This is often desirable in aircraft, vehicle, RV, watercraft and certain other applications where space is a commodity, that is, where passengers are made to move in and out and in between tight spaces where armrests tend to protrude. Thus, armrests do not just support an individual's arms while seated. An armrest also serves as a grab handle.
This feet cuts short substantially the lifecycle of armrests that are designed to be adjustable at points between the vertical and horizontal positions so as to provide optimum comfort for their reclining occupants, i.e., incrementally adjustable armrests. Their lifecycles are approximately 10,000 cycles. Conventional armrest devices that are adjustable incrementally cannot bear up under typical grab handle loads. Load bearing on the order of 1,400-1,600 Newton (N) horizontal and 2,300-2,500 N in the vertical range is required for proper and reliable operation. Conventional armrests tend to be complex in design and have too many moving parts. The parts connecting the armrest to the back and which facilitate incremental adjustment of the armrest relative to the back support bend, wear and eventually break.
Thus, it would be advantageous to provide an improved adjustable armrest device capable of meeting load requirements greater than 2,400 N (vertical force) and 1,500 N (horizontal force). When compared with existing units, such adjustable devices should be capable of being produced without adding to the weight or manufacturing cost of those now available. The device should have fewer moving parts for easy manufacture and assembly in high volume production. It is also desirable to provide an improved adjustable armrest having a longer useful life.
It is finally highly desirable to provide a new adjustable device for connecting an armrest to a furniture piece that incorporates fewer components lowering cost of production, improving torsion force and load bearing capabilities, improving life of the furniture piece and strengthening armrest and furniture piece assembly.